Monday, July 11, 2011

Fun in the Sun at Pier's Park

Week 1 @ Piers Park was a blast for the Harbor Explorers! Since we were afforded such beautiful weather for most of the week, we Harbor Explorers CRABBED, FISHED, and generally EXPLORED to our hearts' content!

On the side of the Pier's Park dock, we found a menagerie of sea creatures! Mussels, Tunicates, Sea Sponges and a variety of seaweeds were found in clusters below the waterline. Some of our explorers had never seen mussels, let alone Golden Star Tunicates, and were eager to learn more about the creatures that had been scooped up in their nets!

With our abundance of Mussels, the Harbor Explorers did a sizing activity, where we sorted the mussels by size (or into age classes). The Explorers thought of the way their parents measured THEIR height changes as they grew older. When the activity was finished, a long line of Mussels bordered the dock, ranging from tall to small. The explorers easily inferred that the smallest mussels were juveniles, and the largest adults. The Harbor Explorers were AMAZED by just how much a mussel could grow in its life cycle!

Some of the same mussels we found were used as bait in our crab traps. And SOOOOOOO many crabs were caught! Invasive Green crabs were found in abundance along with local Red Rock crabs and Jonah crabs. The Harbor explorers were taught how to identify the crabs to species, then determine whether they were male or female. Before long, all of the explorers knew what kind of crab they'd pulled up, before it was out of the trap!

By the end of our days at Pier's Park, all our explorers were thoroughly covered in sea creatures! This week was a blast, and we found so many new creatures.

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Welcome!

Save the Harbor/Save the Bayis a non-profit public-interest Boston Harbor environmental advocacy organization whose mission is to restore and protect Boston Harbor, Massachusetts Bay, the Boston Harbor Islands, the Boston Harbor region's public beaches, Boston's waterfront and the marine environment and share them with the public, for everyone to enjoy.

Since 1986, Save the Harbor / Save the Bay has been the driving force behind the transformation of Boston Harbor from one of the dirtiest urban harbors in America to one of the cleanest in the world.

As a result of our advocacy, Boston Harbor has been transformed from a "Harbor of Shame" into a source of recreational, educational and economic opportunity and civic pride. Today the beaches of South Boston are among the cleanest urban beaches in the nation, the Boston Harbor Islands are a National Park, and Boston's waterfront has become a compelling destination for residents and visitors alike.

Working with a broad base of civic, corporate, government, scientific, philanthropic and community partners, Save the Harbor / Save the Bay continues to strengthen the connections between communities and the harbor, and promote the increasingly important impact Boston Harbor has on the region’s economy.

Each year Save the Harbor / Save the Bay runs 2 freeYouth Environmental Education Programs that combine recreation and hands-on education to bring Boston Harbor alive for thousands of Boston area young people. Since 2003, we have connected nearly 250,000 youth and teens to Boston Harbor, the Boston Harbor Islands, our region's public beaches and Boston's waterfront.

Our "Boston Harbor Explorers" program serves thousands of young people at the Courageous Sailing Center in Charlestown, the Piers Park Sailing Center and Constitution Beach in East Boston, DCR's Carson Beach in South Boston, at Community Boating on the Charles River, on Black's Creek in Quincy, and at Camp Harbor View on Long Island and at The Boston Children's Museum.Our"All Access Boston Harbor"program departs weekdays from the Blue Hills Bank Pavilion in South Boston, and brings thousands of youth and teens from more than 100 community groups to Georges or Spectacle Island in the Boston Harbor Islands National Park on the Provincetown II.

OurBetter Beaches Program supports dozens of free events and activities on the region's public beaches each year in Nahant, Lynn, Revere, Winthrop, East Boston, South Boston, Dorchester, Quincy and Hull.

We hope we can count on you as we share Boston Harbor with 30,000 young people on 28 free island excursions and at 40 free events and programs on the region's public beaches in 2018.For more information about Save the Harbor/Save the Bay please visit our website at www.savetheharbor.org